Part one of term paper
Puberty - The arrival of the monthly “friend”. The principle sign that a girl has become sexually mature and is capable of reproduction is the onset of menstruation, a period of cyclic bleeding from the vagina. (Smith 1997, pg 217) This is one of the key physiological functions of the female body. An ovarian, or estrus, cycle is characte ...

Part two of term paper
... the first day of a given cycle. The menstrual cycle is controlled by mechanisms involving hormones released by the hypothalamus, the pituitary, and the ovaries. The cycle has four stages: the menstrual phase, the preovulatory phase, the ovulation phase, and the postovulatory phase. Refer to Graph One. The preovulatory phase starts as soon as menstrual bleeding from the previous cycle has ended. The anterior pituitary produces large amounts of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and a small amount ...